This invention relates to a pallet. Pallets are often used to store and transport goods. Pallets maintain the goods at a distance above the floor such that they can readily be lifted and moved by a forklift. Plastic pallets are lighter and more durable than wooden pallets.
Some pallets are half the size of standard-sized pallets and are known as “half-pallets.” The half-pallets include a deck and a plurality of spaced-apart feet extending down from the deck to form openings. These half-pallets are transported short distances, such as from a delivery truck into a store, by a person on a wheeled pallet lift jack. The pallet lift jack is first rolled into an opening between the feet of a loaded half-pallet. A pneumatic or mechanical lift mechanism on the pallet lift jack then lifts deck of the half-pallet upward until the feet of the half-pallet are off the ground and the loaded half-pallet can be freely rolled on the pallet lift jack.
One known half-pallet includes a plurality of lateral projections protruding inwardly from lower portions of the feet. These lateral projections contact an underside of the pallet lift jack when the half-pallet is lifted, thereby assisting in locking the half-pallet in position on the pallet lift jack. However, the force exerted against the lateral projections can cause the feet to deflect outwardly, causing the lateral projections to slip off the pallet lift jack.
The known half-pallet also includes recesses on the upper surface of the deck into which are received the feet of a similar pallet stacked thereon. Adjacent recesses (noncontiguous with the recesses that receive the feet) receive the lateral projections of the similar half pallet stacked thereon. The recesses help maintain the stability of a stack of the empty half pallets, but the arrangement of the recesses do not permit cross-stacking of empty half pallets. The feet do not fit into the recesses when cross-stacked.